It's Just Us - Rewrite
by XxQueenFrostxX
Summary: Being forced into swimming lessons by her overprotective father, Asami Sato meets her new swim instructor Korra. Secrets are exposed and lives are changed forever. (Modern!Korrasami) Rated M for later chapters ReWrite!
1. Chapter 1

**_Hello all! I just wanted to start by saying thank you for all the support and love for this story! I want to make this better, I know it can be better, and I feel like I got things mixed up and went too quickly the last time, so let me know what you think of his so far. Things may be the same at first, but there are some major changes coming!_**

 ** _~The-Frozen-Avatar~_**

* * *

Why in the world her father was making her take swimming lessons she would never understand. The very notion that Asami wanted to spend her summer learning a less that important, or needed, skill was almost laughable. She'd much rather be learning a useful skill, something practical that would prepare her to take over her father's business when the time came. Hiroshi was insistent though, the ever worrisome father of hers. Ever since losing her mother he had become overprotective, borderline smothering in his quest to keep her safe and, as it would seem, secluded from the world. He had even refused to let her stay in a dorm on campus, instead she had spent her entire college career being chauffeured back and forth to classes.

' _I'm 22 for spirit's sake, I'm sure I can manage a company without knowing how to swim'_

"Dad, I don't see why I need to do this, I don't see why I all of a sudden need to know how to swim, I don't even like swimming!" Asami grumbled, following her father into his study. She had been trying, unsuccessfully, for weeks to convince him that she didn't need those stupid lessons. The most she did around the water was apply tanning oil, lie in the sun, and ogle cute beach goers.

"Asami," Hiroshi sighed, turning to face his daughter. He used his fingertips to massage his temples in an attempt to ease his tension, "we are not discussing this again. I've already hired an instructor and you'll be at the pool twice a week until they've assured me that you are as comfortable in the water as a fish," his voice had that tone of finality to it that Asami recognized as he would tolerate no more.

She crossed her arms and glared at nothing in particular off in the distance, ignoring her father as he rested a hand on her shoulder.

"I just want you to be safe," his voice was softer than before and it took Asami by surprise, she looked up at her father, her anger faltering a bit when she took in his expression. He looked tired, and older than a man of his age should look. His once dark hair was now sprinkled with silver, his beard included, how had she missed the bags under his eyes, or the weary set of his shoulders? The once strong and steady man now stood a mere shadow before her, thinned and broken from a harsh world.

"Ever since losing your mother," he continued, Asami deflated ' _and here comes the guilt trip,_ ' she thought dryly. "I've done everything in my power to keep you prepared, the world is a cruel and unforgiving place. You'll be taking over for me someday and I want you to be ready for anything and everything," he gave her shoulder a light squeeze and a small smile.

She held his gaze for a moment more, then huffed, defeated, "alright".

"Great!" he grinned fully now, "be at the pool tomorrow, noon, your instructor will be waiting," he gave her shoulder another, firmer squeeze, and then brushed past her, leaving her alone.

"great...wonderful," she grumbled to herself.

* * *

Her first day of her lessons and she couldn't find her damn swimsuit.

' _This is just great,'_ she thought, while angrily digging through her bottom drawer. She tossed clothes around the room carelessly. Maybe she should have gotten things prepared beforehand? She shook the stray thought from her mind and continued her search. No, she didn't need to prepared for something she hadn't wanted to do in the first place. She'd go to her lessons, and make sure she finished them as soon as humanly possible. She wanted to enjoy her summer off from classes, not to be forced into learning more when all she really wanted to do was relax.

"It's not like I need to look good anyway, dad probably hired some teenaged boy who is gonna ogle me the entire time," she grumbled.

Asami dug to the very corner of her drawer, and hit paydirt,

"There you are!" she sang, pulling the simple maroon one piece into the air.

She took her time changing and pulled her hair back into a lazy bun, that was as much effort she was willing to put into impressing anyone today. She slipped on her flip flops, pulled her beach towel close to her body, and made her way down to the back patio of their large home. If there was one thing Asami was appreciative of, it was that her father had planned for her swimming lessons to be at their private pool, if she had to endure the humiliation of not knowing how to swim at least it would be in the privacy of her own home. Heck, this way she could probably get away with a little sunbathing and convincing her "teacher" that these lessons were really unneeded.

The walk to the pool was a bit of a stretch through the garden, but it was one that Asami had always loved taking. The garden had been her mother's pride and joy. She'd spend every day between the beginning of spring and the end of summer out in the garden tending to her flowers. That was, until a few years back when they had lost her.

Looking around at the colorful assortment now, it was lackluster compared to how it had been in the past. Asami could vividly remember the bright and bold colors her mother seemed to coaxe from each bud, and the glowing smile she'd see on her mother each time she collected a new specimen. Whenever Hiroshi returned from a long business trip he would present her with a new or rare breed from somewhere across the globe. The garden was filled to the brim with Earth nation daisys, Fire nation tulips, and even rare lilies that only grew high in the mountains of the Air nation. Her father had hired many a person to try and keep the garden preserved in her mother's memory, but it had never really been the same.

As she trudged down the path she could see the 8 foot privacy fence that surrounded the pool area coming into view. The sun was high in the sky, warming her skin in a way that was quickly becoming uncomfortable. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to spend the day in the pool?

As she finally reached her destination she drew in a breath and pushed the fence door open in one long motion, mentally preparing herself for the youngster she was undoubtedly about to meet.

Once stepping into the fenced area Asami stopped dead in her tracks. Well this was definitely the last thing she expected to see.

' _Holy mother of - '_

"Hi," Asami squeaked absently.

Okay, a teenaged boy she could handle, this however, was not something she was mentally prepared for. About ten feet away stood a girl, no a woman, about her age and smiling politely. She was about half a head shorter than Asami, with dark skin, and hair that barely brushed her strong shoulders.

"Hi," the woman grinned, her aqua eyes brightening as she approached the young heiress with an outstretched hand. Asami took the offered appendage as she studied the woman before her. She wore a classic swim top, dark blue and simple, but black board shorts that hung low on her full hips. A tattoo of an unfamiliar tribal design adorned her perfectly muscled right bicep.

As Asami examined the woman in front of her she swallowed the lump in her throat.

' _What is wrong with me?'_ She thought to herself as she pulled her hand from the other woman's grip. ' _You know damn well what's wrong with you,'_ Okay, now is not the time to be talking to myself.

Asami shook her head lightly, the other woman had began to talk, but she hadn't heard a word,

"I'm sorry, what was that?"

The dark skinned girl laughed and waved a hand absently," I said it's nice to meet you, I'm Korra".

"Asami," she greeted in a quiet voice.

Korra smiled thoughtfully and motioned towards the large pool that sat to their right.

"So, I hear you have a bit of trouble in the water," she said.

Asami frowned, just what had her father told this woman? She crossed her arms over her chest, and looked the other woman up and down, "maybe," she admitted lightly.

Korra chuckled and put her hands on her hips, she was suddenly beaming, her back arched as if she had just won a battle, "then you've come to the right place".

Asami barely listened to her boast, she was too busy trying to keep her eyes off of the other woman's toned stomach. Obviously there were some things Asami needed to address about herself, but for now, she just wanted to get this over with.

Korra suddenly clapped her hands together and took a large step towards the heiress, "are you ready for your first lesson?"

Asami eyed her wearily, and nodded her head slowly as she watched the shorter woman approach her. When Korra was just a mere foot away from her she stopped her approach and beamed once more,

"First lesson," she suddenly had a hand on either of Asami's sides, "get in!" and then they were both in the water.

* * *

Asami hadn't been ready for that. When her body hit the cold water's surface she gasped, and sucked in a mouthful of water. That, along with the sheer heat from Korra's touch sent her into a frenzy. She would never admit this out loud, especially not around her father, but she really needed these lessons. She had never been comfortable in the water, and well, maybe even a little scared. So when her head had dipped under the water's edge, she began to panic and flail.

She kicked her legs frantically, but ultimately found her footing, after realizing that she could actually stand, and forced her head above the water. She gasped and spit water. Her hair had come undone and was now drenched and hanging like a sheet in her face. There was little she could do but stand there and catch her breath angrily, that was until she heard the lightest bit of laughter come from her side.

Asami flipped her hair out of her face and turned to glare at Korra, her cheeks and ears red from embarrassment. Korra covered her mouth to hide her laughter, but the damage had already been done. The heiress wasn't going to stand there and be laughed at, no matter how -

She didn't even finish the thought, she was flustered and angry. Asami turned away from Korra and started to wade to the poolside.

"Ah! Wait!" Korra's laughter died as she chased after the heiress.

Asami ignored her and started to pull herself from the pool. She was going to go inside and tell her father she was officially done learning this idiotic skill. That was, until she felt Korra's fingers wrap around her wrist gently. Asami faltered for a moment, and glanced back at her instructor.

Korra looked incredibly guilty, her eyebrows were quirked in a way that made her eyes look lighter than before. She avoided Asami's gaze as she nervously rubbed the back of her neck with her free hand,

"I'm sorry if that was too much".

Asami studied the woman silently for a moment. She truly looked like she regretted her actions, she wouldn't even meet her eyes. The heiress sighed before settling back into the water in front of the shorter woman. She would never learn without making herself at least a little uncomfortable, would she?

"It's okay," she mumbled, but Korra immediately perked up.

"Good, then let's try something a bit different".

* * *

This time around she didn't thrash or sputter or completely embarrass herself, she just let Korra lead her into the deeper end of the pool. She tried to focus on what Korra was saying to her, something about kicking her legs and something about her arms. She didn't really know, she'd been too distracted with the growing tightness in her chest.

This was something she'd experienced before, and had tried many times to drown in the depths of herself. Now was not the time to dwell on things that didn't need to exist in the first place.

"Just relax your body, if you tense up you'll just sink," Korra was saying, but all Asami's brain registered were the two strong hands on either side of her waist that were keeping her afloat,

"okay, you're tensing up," the other woman's voice came, closer than it was before. She had wrapped an arm around the heiress's waist, the other worked with her legs to keep them both safely floating. Asami's heart was thundering in her chest, the water around her no longer felt cool and refreshing, boiling was more like it.

They'd been at this for more than an hour now, trying, and failing to learn how to tread water. Asami just couldn't concentrate on anything but the person beside her, and the dark secret that probed sharply at her chest.

Korra could tell something was off, but she didn't know, and didn't dare ask what was bothering the heiress. They'd just met, and she knew it'd take a while before Asami would trust her enough to talk about it. But, it did give her an idea.

Asami was thankful when Korra announced that their lesson was over, and helped her into the shallow end of the pool. Asami took no time climbing out of the water and wrapping a towel around her drenched body. She watched as Korra rose out of the water and made her way to her own towel. Neither of them had said much to each other in the last hour, and honestly Asami was scared of what would come out of her mouth if she tried to speak now.

Korra rubbed her head rapidly with her towel, causing her short hair to curl and flair in every direction. Asami couldn't help but chuckle at this, which in turned earned a crooked grin from the other woman.

"I know that today was a little rough, but I have an idea that will help things along," Korra began.

Asami raised an eyebrow at that, "and what would that be?"

Korra crossed her arms and grinned, "it's a surprise for next time!"

* * *

Two hours later Hiroshi found his daughter curled around text books in the sun room, reading glasses pushed to the end of her nose. She looked so much like her mother that it made his chest tighten painfully.

Asami looked up when he entered the room, her books and papers forgotten for the moment. He came to stand beside her, a soft smile playing behind his beard, "so how was your first lesson, as bad as you imagined it to be?"

Asami thought back to her morning with Korra, shrugging in an attempt to be nonchalant,

"it wasn't as horrible," she offered.

Hiroshi chuckled and ran a hand through his thick beard, "I'm sure it'll get better as time progresses," he gave her knee a light pat and then turned to leave, but was stopped by his daughter's voice, "thanks, dad".

He turned and gave her a small smile before exiting.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Hello all! This one is a bit shorter, but completely new! Please let me know what you think of the rewrite so far, so I know whether or not to continue doing it. Thanks!**_

 _ **~The-Frozen-Avatar**_

* * *

Wind whipped her hair against her neck and cheeks while the early morning rays of sunlight danced off of the waters in the distance. Korra had always loved this time of day. When the sun was just beginning to peak from behind the horizon, and the world was in a state between slumber and slow her opinion, this was the best time to be out on the water, in the open ocean, nothing but her, the sound of crashing waves, and birds flying overhead. In fact, she'd been out long before the sun had made its appearance that morning. She just had to get out of that stuffy old temple, and out into the open air that smelled so much of home.

And if she were being honest with herself, she hadn't been able to sleep well anyway. There was too much on her mind.

Korra sunk low into the oncoming wave, keeping her short board close and steady as she rode the surf until she was close to shore. The sun was almost fully above the horizon by now, and that meant that Tenzin and Pema were close to waking. She needed to get back to Air Temple Island at least by the time they were awake. She was their guest after all, and not being there when they woke up would be a sure way to cause some panic.

She dropped onto her board, stomach flat against the cool surface beneath her, and began to paddle her way inland. She'd only been in the city for a few weeks now, less than that really if you considered the time spent stuck on the Island with her little host family. Things here were a lot different than they were with the Southern tribes, people here were tense and uptight, unlike the calm and peaceful ways of her people.

' _Especially her…'_

The thought bubbled through her mind unconsciously. She frowned as she paddled into the shallows surrounding the island. Asami Sato, huh? She was something else, like no one she'd ever really come into contact with before. She was privileged, rich, and polished for the city life with a tense aura that left Korra feeling a little perturbed. She didn't quite know how to act around the young heiress. They'd only had a brief meeting, but Korra could already tell that this woman didn't trust her, and that was something she was going to have to change if they were going to make any progress at all.

That was easier said than done however, this woman had looked Korra up and down like she was some kind of monster come to suck the very life from her. Korra wasn't used to people looking at her in such a way, and she didn't know how to interpret the expression that found its way onto Asami's face whenever she neared said woman. It was almost as if Korra made Asami feel physically ill with her presence.

Korra let her thoughts fade as she waded onto shore. She pulled her board to her side and started to trudge towards her temporary home. The sun had fully come into view now, casting long rays of light out onto the ocean behind her. She sat her board in its designated spot and found her mind once again drifting back to the day before. She rubbed two fingers against each temple and sighed. Surfing was what she did to take the stress away, but that didn't seem to be working this morning.

Asami Sato. Twenty two, the heiress to the entirety of Future Industries, and her one shot and earning enough money to enter the surfing competition at the end of the summer. If Korra couldn't figure out a way to earn Asami's trust, she would have to give up her dream of competing in the heart of the surfing world.

This was going to be a long summer.

* * *

Asami hurriedly made her way through the bustling streets of Republic City's shopping district; pushing gently past people to get to her destination. It was quarter past two, and she was late meeting her ride. Her father always insisted on her being chauffeured wherever she may go, no matter how many times she protested. Usually she'd have been early to meet her driver, but something had caused her to stray from her original path, and that something was tucked into her arms as she pushed through people.

"It's okay, it's okay," she whispered to the small thing curled in her arms.

Thunder rumbled in the darkening sky above her, and she cursed under her breath as she picked up her pace. That morning had been beautiful, not a cloud in the sky, but as the hours went by, the sky had begun to threaten a downpour.

Fifteen minutes ago she'd been on her way to meet her driver when something caught her attention. Through the crowd and the noise came a small sound, something she barely heard over the chatter of people and the occasional grumbling from above. There, on the edge between sidewalk and road, sat a small kitten. It was absolutely tiny! The color of steel and mewling softly as people passed it by. It shook and curled into the concrete, as if trying to hide from the onslaught of noises around it.

She pushed through the crowd, disregarding her earlier route, until she reached the small creature, and sunk to a kneel before it.

"Hello, little one," she cooed.

The small feline gave her a cry, and huddled into itself. It shook steadily, but made no move to escape as she reached to take it into her arms. In fact, as soon as it had settled into the crook of her crossed elbows it began to purr lightly. That was enough to elicit a warm smile from the heiress, and solidify her decision to keep this small, extremely skinny, ball of vibrating fur.

When she finally approached her disgruntled driver she offered a quick apology and slid into the back of the Satomobile, still cradling the kitten safely in her arms.

"What have you got with you, Miss Sato?" her driver began as he pulled the vehicle onto the street.

Asami gave the solid grey kitten a once over, making sure that it was not hurt in any way before she gave her answer, "this is Tetsu".

Her driver offered a simple reply, and then focused his attention on the traffic around them.

Tetsu made himself at home on her lap, lightly purring as she stroked his lightly crusted fur. She new her father had never loved pets, but knew he'd never have the heart to turn away the small feline.

"We'll get you something to eat when we get home, little one," she cooed lightly as she glanced out her window.

The sky had opened up on them, unleashing a summer rain that misted the sidewalks and streets. Asami wondered absently if she'd miss her swimming lessons tomorrow.

* * *

Just as she had thought, Hiroshi wasn't thrilled with the idea of inviting a stray animal into his home, but the look on his daughter's face had him giving in before he'd had a chance to argue. She gave him a tight hug and trotted off to clean the youngster up, and get him a proper meal.

Half an hour later she and Tetsu were snuggled together on her bed. She, reading a book about the laws of business, and him sleeping on her pillows. There wasn't much more for her to do on this wet and dreary day and, honestly she didn't mind a little time to herself now and then.

Her home had been quiet or a while now, the only sounds were the soft rumbles of thunder, and the faint purring of the kitten. Her father must have gone back to the office for the night, leaving her to entertain herself for the rest of the evening. She could continue to study, maybe go to her workshop and tinker for a while, or…...

Greens eyes slid to the sleeping figure next to her, she did her best not to wake him as she slipped from her mattress to make her way to her computer. There had been something on her mind for a while now, and this seemed like the perfect time to expand on the thoughts plaguing her mind.

Her hands shook lightly as she opened up her laptop and proceeded to begin her search. There were a few things she'd stumbled upon once before while browsing the internet, but had never dared to return to again. Out of sheer embarrassment and quite a bit of denial. She took an unsteady breath as she reached her search destination. Just one more click and, there, she'd done it, the screen lit up and Asami found the search bar.

Facebook. Dreaded Facebook and social media. Asami hated it, and had done everything in her power to stay away from such sites, but this was something she was all too curious about. She began a short type into the search bar, just a single word.

 _ **Korra.**_

Even though she didn't know her last name, there was no reason to keep searching, there was only one Korra that came up in her search. Oddly enough, there was no surname available, but the reason for that became apparent after a short moment of scrolling.

"Daughter of the chief of the Southern Water Tribes?" she whispered to no one in particular.

That certainly came as a shock to the heiress. Why was she here in Republic City? Giving swimming lessons no less?

Asami let the shock of the discovery slip away for a moment, she could dwell on that bit of information later. She hadn't come to learn about Korra's family, she'd come to, well…

Asami gulped as she selected a photo album labeled 'Summer'. Just as she expected, pictures of the young woman at the beach, dressed in short tights made for colder waters.

"Spirits," Asami breathed, embarrassed at herself, but unable to stop scrolling, "she's hot".


	3. Chapter 3

_**Hello everyone! Here we go again! Please review and let me know what you think, it really helps the creative process and motivation!**_

 _ **~The-Frozen-Avatar**_

* * *

'C'mon you little son of a -' the bolt Asami had been painstakingly trying to loosen finally gave way, ending her tirade of frustrated grumbles. It was a little known fact about Asami, she loved working with machinery, satomobiles, robotics, anything with an engine that she could get her hands on. It was her own personal form of relaxation, her way of letting off steam when she needed to. The steady repetition and monotony that came with repairing and rebuilding was comforting, and she would often spend hours tinkering alone in the warehouse, only to emerge tired, sweaty, and covered in motor oil.

The weeks after her mother died she had spent locked away in her room, the only thing keeping her mind occupied were her designs and blueprints, she had immediately insisted her father build her a place in the estate for her to work on them. He had resisted at first, but the way his daughter lit up when she talked about her designs and ideas had him picking out a building site soon after.

She knew her father hated this end of the business, he always said to leave the manual labor to the people he paid to do it, while he himself preferred to sit in his office and sign papers. Asami couldn't have disagreed more, she enjoyed every part of it, working with her hands, bringing her designs and ideas to life personally, it was more than fulfilling, it was inspiring, soulfully satisfying. It was fascinating to think that something she thought up in her head could come to life with a bit of hard work.

The heiress slid forward, reaching out and groping blindly for the wrench she had abandoned just moments before. She wrapped her fingers around the cold metal and resumed her place under the hulking metal above her. She found another uncompromising bolt and she cursed loudly when the wrench's grip failed and her free hand slammed into the sharp metal around it. She shook her hand out, trying to soothe the ache already beginning to set it, but paused when she heard a familiar snort of laughter.

"I didn't know you were such a potty mouth," Asami's eyes widened and she slid herself out from under the satomobile, misjudging the distance and catching her forehead against metal when she sat up. She rubbed the bump already beginning to form on her forehead, and glared at the laughing woman in front of her.

Korra tried her best to hide her snickers behind her hand, but failed miserably.

Asami continued to glared up at the other woman,attempting to look intimidating while she still rubbed at her forehead, "what are you doing here?" she asked, looking the still grinning woman up and down.

She wore dark grey sweatpants that hung low on her hips and and old t-shirt with the arms and sides cut away. There was a faded logo across the front of her shirt that she couldn't make heads or tails of. Korra stuffed her hands into the pockets of her pants, "we have a lesson today remember?" her blue eyes slid down and back up, a wicked grin flashing, "but you may want to shower before hopping in the pool".

Asami stiffened, casting a quick glance down at herself. She wore and old tank top, faded and ripped jeans and high boots, her hair was pulled messily to the back of her skull, not to mention the fact that she was covered head to toe in oil and sweat. She flushed, mortified to be seen in such a sorry state, especially by someone as spectacular as Korra.

' _Spectacular? Really Asami?'_

She ignored the thought as she crossed her arms and straightened her spine. She was definitely embarrassed to be seen this way, but there was no way in Hell she'd let Korra see that.

The dark skinned woman rocked back and forth on her toes and heels, eyes darting around the room now, "what are you working on?" she asked, her eyes coming back to rest of the woman sitting on the ground in front of her.

Asami pushed herself up off the floor, dusting absently at the back of her jeans and ignoring Korra's gaze, "nothing" she spat.

Of course she had no reason to be so rude, but Asami had never been keen on having people in her workshop, especially people that made her think and feel things she was definitely not supposed to. Asami turned to leave and heard Korra stumble to catch up to her. They walked silently towards the main house, until Asami suddenly did an about face and ended up stopping Korra dead in her tracks.

"Are you planning on following me all the way into the shower?"

Korra sputtered for a second, and the heiress could see the way her cheeks darkened for a moment before she cleared her throat to answer,

"I uh, wasn't intending to, I guess I'll meet you by the pool when you're finished?"

Asami merely nodded and turned to stalk into her home.

Okay, there was absolutely no reason she should be so rude to the other woman, but it wasn't intentional. The idea of letting someone like Korra close to her, any closer than necessary, was both exciting and terrifying. She was caught between wanting to get to know the other woman, and wanting to be as far away from her as possible.

Just a set of stairs later and she was in her bathroom, which just so happened to overlook the back patio and the pool. The heiress hesitated for a moment, before deciding that since no one else was around it'd be fine to sneak a peek at the other woman before hopping in the shower.

She pulled the curtains back ever so slightly, just in case the movement would be too obvious, and poked her head out to look through the glass. She saw Korra at one of the lounging chairs, digging through her duffel bag for something. Asami watched as she pulled out a bottle of water and a towel before she turned and sat her belongings on a table near the pools edge. As soon as she was free of her items, she began to kick her shoes and socks off, before gripping the hem of her shirt and pulling it over her head.

Heat suddenly flared in Asami's stomach, spreading up through her chest and neck; even her ears felt warm. She watched as Korra started to slide her sweatpants down her toned legs, and the breath hitched in her throat.

' _Okay, now you're just being creepy'_

The heiress cursed under her breath, and pulled the curtain closed a bit harder than she intended to. A loud clanging of metal against glass rang out, and she prayed to every spirit she knew of that Korra hadn't heard it.

Her chest felt tight as she began to rid herself of her dirty clothes, and as she slid into the warm water than fell from her shower-head she tried not to imagine the way Korra looked soaking wet.

* * *

Asami joined Korra 15 minutes later. She tried to ignore the fact that water was dripping down her arms and stomach, and instead focused her attention on the air next to Korra's head.

"Are you ready to do this?" Korra asked, beaming as she approached the heiress.

Asami nodded, still a little wary that she'd get dragged into the pool once more. She watched as Korra lowered herself into the pool and motioned for Asami to join her. The heiress hesitated for a moment before slowly stepping into the chilled pool. Goosebumps rose on her arms as she strode deeper into the water.

"I thought we could start slow, go through the basics of water safety, and then test your lung capacity," Korra began.

"What, like 'no running or splashing'?" Asami used her hands to air-quote this.

Korra chuckled and rubbed the back of her neck absently. Asami ignored the fact that this made her arms bulge and flex in a very enticing way.

"Well, yeah, but that's not exactly what I meant. The best way to stay safe in the water, is to use the buddy system!"

Asami arched a brow, urdging Korra to continue, "always having someone with you when you're in the water, whether swimming or boating, can determine the outcome of a bad situation. It is possible to drown in less than an inch of water, and if no one is around to help, you're doomed".

Asami believed she was being a tad dramatic, but decided against arguing with her instructor. The quicker she finished her lessons, the quicker she could go back to ignoring the secret itching to break free.

"I also think we should spend some time together outside of the pool," Korra smiled.

Asami whipped her head towards Korra, almost giving herself whiplash i the process, "what?"

Korra flinched, the tone of Asami's voice had been harsher than she intended, so she cleared her throat, and tried once more, "why would we need to do that?"

"I'm going to be your swimming 'buddy' for a while, and I think it'd be a good idea if we got to know more about each other, you can't really trust someone in a drastic situation if you barely know them, right?"

Asami simply studied Korra silently for a moment

 _Really, what is going to happen in a private pool that could be so drastic?_

But, of course, Korra was right. They knew nothing of each other, and even though Asami was still wary of Korra's presence, the thought of spending more time with Korra had her heart beating faster.

"Okay," the heiress agreed quietly, and the grin that spread across Korra's face made it all worth it.

"Great! Now let's see how long you can hold your breath!"

* * *

Asami was exhausted. By the time dinner was finished she was ready to fall into her bed and sleep through the rest of the week. Who knew that spending hours in the water would tire a person out so much?

Her usual short walk to her bedroom felt like an eternity, but as soon as she was up it was only a few more feet until she reached her large bed. She could see Tetsu already, his soft grey fur poking out in every direction as he curled into one of her pillows. Once she removed her shoes she flopped onto her mattress in a very unladylike fashion. The jolt woke Tetsu, but he didn't seem too bothered by the intrusion. He stretched and mewled softly before coming to rub himself against her side.

Asami smiled at the small kitten, scratching him lightly under his chin as he settled into the crook of her arm.

"Tomorrow I'll go and pick you out all kinds of things, little one".

Tetsu only purred in response, and the soft vibration was almost enough to lull her to sleep.

That was until she felt a different, much more obnoxious vibration coming from her pocket. Who would be texting her at this hour?

She groaned quietly, and shuffled her free hand into her pocket to retrieve the device.

 _Unknown number._

She opened her phone and found the new message.

 _ **Hey! It's Korra! I hope you don't mind, but I got your number from your dad so we can stay in touch. I was hoping we could do something tomorrow, if you're up for it?**_

"Tetsu, what should I do!?" Asami sighed dramatically, and waited for the answer she knew wasn't going to come.

She pushed her face into her pillow, if her father had willingly given her number to Korra, then he obviously wanted her to go along with whatever her instructor suggested. Saying no would be the smart thing for her, but she knew that it would be impossible to explain to her father.

She groaned once more before lifting her head and typing a quick response.

 _ **Sounds good, meet out front at noon.**_


End file.
